Cloud Nine
by TheDragonQueen706
Summary: After 'All Out', Karina pushes forward in both of her careers. AEW's debut on TNT is upon her and concerns start to waver her confidence, including those that involve her ex-boyfriend PAC. While her new flame, Kenny Omega, starts to wonder if her wrestling again was the right choice. Especially when Tony Khan comes up with a new storyline for her. Sequel to One Winged Angel.
1. Missing Part

**A/N: Thank you for continuing this journey with me. So, here it goes. Chapter one is here. Let me know what you think.**

**** Lyrics in this chapter belong to Linkin Park. I do not own them.****

**Chapter 1:**

**Missing Part**

**Karina**

"Are you ready to do this?" Jayson asked, placing a hand on my shoulder.

Swallowing the water in my mouth, I lifted my head to smile. This was our first live performance since May, when I really thought Celestial had crumbled and could no longer find their way back together. As it turned out, Landon just needed some time to think and we've been working well together ever since the reunion.

I hadn't wrestled a match since 'All Out' and that gave me time to focus on the band as a whole. AEW was surprisingly supportive of my music career, course Chris Jericho had a career in music as well. Internally laughing, I thought about how vain I thought he was to come out to his own music. You'd never see me do such a thing.

"Oh yes, I've been ready." I answered, sliding down from the equipment case I had been sitting upon.

Breaking Benjamin was nice enough to allow us to open for them when their tour opening act couldn't make the trip. Honestly, it happened so quickly and here we were ready to go back out onto a stage that we dreamed of performing on as kids. The lights dimmed down and the crowd started to grow loud with anticipation.

Hayley nudged me as she passed me to step out onto the stage first, holding her drumsticks up in the air. She sat down behind the set just as Landon and Jayson made their way onto the stage. All I could do was smile. There were so many things that happened over the last several months that I was thankful for and this was one of them.

The music started to play and it was my turn to make my entrance. My aquamarine hair flowed behind me with every step I took with a microphone in hand. The environment was welcoming and I easily fell into my grove. My voice had carried me away and made me think about Kenny, who was stuck at the Atlanta airport due to a flight delay. I knew that he wanted to be here tonight; but fate hadn't been shining upon us and that was okay. The fact that he wanted to support me here was more than enough for me.

Time seemed to pass by far too fast when you are enjoying yourself. Lifting my microphone back up to my lips, I started to address the crowd for the finale. "Sadly, our time is up. We have enjoyed playing in front of each and every one of you here tonight." I said.

The crowd cheered louding and began chanting 'One more song'. I smiled, expressing a lighthearted laugh in the process. It was times like this that I enjoyed my career choices. I felt their love wash over me. "What do you guys think, should we give them one more?" I asked, turning to look at my friends.

They all agreed, signalling for the song we've been working on secretly for over a month. "Alight, one more song! In light of the tragic deaths in 2017 of two very special artists that have influenced us, we are going to honor one of them right now. His name is Chester Bennington of Linkin Park."

It didn't take long for the crowd to grow louder than I ever thought they could. "To help me do that, everyone please welcome my sister...Shay Lewis to the stage." I introduced. She started to walk out onto the stage. Her long brown hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, which seemed to accent her denim jacket that covered a white crop top tank top. Her vinyl leggins were complete with white ankle booties.

I could tell that she was nervous; but she covered it up well. She moved to embrace me quickly before settling into her own grove and style. The music started softly, while she held up the microphone to her lip.

"Forfeit the game

Before somebody else

Takes you out of the frame

And puts your name to shame

Cover up your face

You can't run the race

The pace is too fast

You just won't last." She rapped, nailing it completely.

The band dived in, creating the epic song from 2000. She threw her head forward, swirling her hair in the process. I walked around her, lifting the microphone to my lips while keeping eye contact with her.

"You love the way I look at you." She sang softly.

"While taking pleasure in the awful things you put me through

You take away If I give in

My life, my pride is broken." I sang, using the raspier side of my voice.

"You like to think you've never wrong

(You live what you've learned)

You have to act like you're someone

(You live what you've learned)

You want someone to hurt like you

(You live what you've learned)

You want to share what you've been through

(You live what you've learned)" We alternated, starting with my voice first.

By the end of the song, you couldn't even tell Shay was nervous. We held hands and took a bow before the crowd as they screamed in acceptance. Warm tears trickled down my cheeks. Pressing two fingers to my lips, I kissed them and then moved my hand up in the air. Shay waved and took another bow before we left the stage completely, letting the crew take down our equipment.

Wiping away the tears, Shay wrapped an arm around my waist as we walked back to our dressing room. "You were amazing out there tonight." She complimented, nudging my arm with her forehead.

"Thank you, so were you."

Sitting down on the first chair that came into view, I slid my handbag over and picked up my phone. There were a missed video call, missed call and several text messages waiting for me. The video call and call were from Kenny along with a couple of the text messages. My mom was the other messages. Thankfully none of them were from Adrian. After 'All Out' he had become silent, which was welcomed; but it also got me thinking about what why he was actually silent.

His weird alliance with Nyla Rose also concerned me, because it didn't just seem like it was all storyline based. Just thinking about Nyla got my blood boiling and for good reason. She was the reason I had the back eye after 'All Out'. I owed her big time and she would eventually get hers.

**Kenny**

"You've got to be fucking kidding me." I groaned, hearing another delay over the loudspeaker of the airport.

I ran a hand over my face angrily. Not only did I miss my girlfriend's first show since May, I was now going to miss an important meeting with Tony Khan, Cody, Matt and Nick. This was not how this day was supposed to go. Swiping up on the screen of my phone, I attempted to call Karina once more. She needed to know what was going on, then I would let Cody know.

After a couple of rings, her voice greeted me warmly. The anger I was feeling was swept under the rug, at least for the time being. "Have you made it on the plane yet?" She questioned, holding onto an underlying hope.

"Unfortunately, no. They delayed the fight again. I'm going to miss a meeting tomorrow too."

"That's stupid. Is there a reason for the delay?"

"Weather."

I could hear her sigh and it broke my heart hearing her disappointment. Slouching in my seat, I begun to stare up at the glass ceilings. She started to explain how the show went and the more she told me the more disappointed I was in the events that had prevented my attendance. "So are you going to be doing anymore shows before Dynamite's debut?" I asked, changing the subject of my delay.

"No, we are going to finish up recording the rest of the album. It's going to take a little while to have the final mixing done and stuff, so we are looking at a summer 2020 release."

"I'm so proud of you. You've come a long way since the first time I met you."

"I have come a long way and I owe a lot of that to you."

A smile tugged at my lips. She always wanted to thank me for things like that; but the reality was, I was just a catalyst to her own inner desire to break free of the things that bound her in chains. Don't get me wrong, I was thrilled that she was doing far better now mentally than months prior; however, I couldn't take all the credit for it. Far too many people contributed to her changes. "I'm about to get on the freeway and I'm going to loose cell service. Can I call when I get home?" She asked.

"I'm going to try and find a hotel last minute, I'll call you in the morning."

"Okay, goodnight. I'll see you soon."

"Goodnight…"

The line clicked and the call ended. Getting up from the bench I had been sitting on, I pulled my bags behind me while scrolling for a hotel that had any vacancies. Thankfully, there was one about three miles away. I booked it quickly and proceeded towards the exit of the building and waited for the uber I had ordered.

In those moments, I found myself thinking about 'All Out'. There was a look in Karina's eyes when she was made to watch me pass out in PAC's submission. It was devastation. The match with him was personal for her and I finally realized that everything that dealt with him would be personal for her.

I started to wonder if it had been a good idea to push the issue for her to wrestle again. She tried her damnedest to keep her emotions from taking control and I loved that about her; but at the same time, the concern for her mental stability started to creep its way inside my mind.

**Karina**

Unlocking the front door, Shay and I stepped inside. It was dark and quiet. If felt empty. Jayson and Hayley rarely stayed anymore. They had bought a house on the other side of the city and were busy finishing up the preparations for their wedding at the end of October. October 26th to be exact.

Shay immediately ran up the stairs to her bedroom. I walked across the foyer and turned on the kitchen lights. On the center of the island was a large bouquet of flowers in a clear glass vase. Cautiously stepping towards the gift in question, I picked up the small card that was attached to the ribbon wrapped around the glass.

"October 2nd, the day karma will come around.

I'll take them out one by one, leaving you alone

Just like you left me."

Out of rage, I picked up the vase and threw it across the kitchen. The glass shattered the second it hit the wall. Water and flowers fell to the floor in disarray. Shay came running into the kitchen seeing the aftermath for herself. I couldn't move, the anger was boiling over and I didn't want to take it out on her.

"Karina…"

She cautiously came to my side and took the paper out of my hand, reading it. The second she touched me, I broke down. How in the hell was I going to explain this to Kenny or better yet, The Elite? Adam had a match with him October 2nd. Was he going to be the first victim after he defeated Kenny at 'All Out'? "You should tell Kenny about this." She suggested.

"And tell him what? There's a possibility that Adrian wants to purposely hurt all members of The Elite…"

"I don't know...something. I highly doubt anyone would take those words lightly."

I heard what she was saying; but I honestly had no idea how to go about it, even if I wanted to say something. All I knew was that I was going to have to be extremely careful come October 2nd.

Shay started to sweep up the shards of glass from the floor before the water ruined the wood. I pulled myself together for her sake and took a picture of the card before throwing it into the trash.


	2. Ideas

**A/N: A special thanks goes to nrkay, Julie5089, BreakTheWalls and DarkDragonessFiles for becoming followers to the new story. Another special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls for the wonderful review. I really hope you all enjoy what comes next. Onto number two and let me know what you think.**

**Chapter 2:**

**Ideas**

**Karina**

I was beginning to think that maybe there was a reason for all the trouble that had befallen me recently. Adrian's warning still hung heavy over my head. Would he really go through with the things he said? I really didn't want to find out; but knew that it was only a matter of time before I would find out for myself.

Sitting in my seat on the plane that would take me to Washington D.C, I tried to only focus on the good things. My music was, once again, successful and I was about to be part of AEW's first episode on live TV. I couldn't be more proud of the things I had accomplished in such a short time.

My phone vibrated inside my hand with an incoming text message. In the midst of my open mouth yawn, I swiped up on the screen to read the contents. _"**Tony would like to speak to you once you get to the arena. He has an idea to pitch in your direction."**_ Matt's message read.

**_"Really? What kind of idea?" _**

**_"Not sure."_**

That was odd. It was even more odd to me as the newcomer to be trusted with so many things already. I honestly didn't expect it at all; but at the same time, I was beyond thrilled. Kenny had been right to continue to push me in the direction of wrestling and I would be forever grateful to him for that.

Speaking of Kenny, he would be waiting for me at the airport when the plane landed. He has arrived in D.C a day or so before me due to all the production meetings and such for the show. I couldn't wait to see him.

There was a young couple in the seats in front of me. They were talking about music while scrolling down playlists on their phones. He leaned over to place a kiss on her cheek and accidentally clicked on a song on the playlist. It started to blare out into the open.

I smiled, recognizing the song as my own. 'Alive' had become quite the hit on radio stations all over the world, even creeping into the top ten on the Big Uns countdown on SiriusXM Octane for a couple weeks.

They scrambled to turn it off and I laughed on the inside. It was a great thing to see them enjoy the simple things in life. Looking down at my own phone, I couldn't seem to think of anything else to say to Matt in regards to Tony's idea aimed for me, so I opted to say nothing else.

Plugging ear-buds into my ears, I allowed myself to drown into the solace of music. My mind swirled with thoughts of the past. There was no way I was going to be able to hide my past history with Adrian and from what I could already tell, they were going to use it as a storyline for the show.

Another message came in and this time it was from Shay, whom I had left at home this time. **_"Is it alright if Jayson helps he record a demo?"_** A smile crept to my face. I was thrilled that she wanted to take on a new challenge in the music industry; but there were rough patches that she still had to overcome and at the same time, I was glad that I could help her through those.

**_"Of course. I look forward to hearing it when I get back. Call my mom if you need anything, okay…"_**

**_"Alright, I'll be watching tonight. Good luck and tell Kenny I said hi."_**

**_"I will."_**

Once again, I was back to thinking far too much. I wondered what Tony wanted me to do. I already had a rivalry with Nyla Rose that I wanted to continue exploring. If I was honest with myself, I felt there could be real storytelling chemistry between us.

Looking out the window, the blue of the sky was calming and the white of the clouds just made me realize just how much I was enjoying the things in my life currently. All I could do was smile at the simple thoughts.

**Kenny**

Standing at the airport seemed like a regular venture, except this time I was waiting for someone to arrive instead of arriving myself. Karina would be emerging soon as her flight had just landed a few minutes ago.

Our relationship had devolved little by little since 'All Out' and going at a slower pace kept us happy while exploring the ins and outs of each others personality, which has been enlightening.

The sight of her aquamarine hair immediately brought a smile to my face. She was carrying a bag over her shoulder and pulling a suitcase behind her. Weaving through the large crowd of people, she finally made it to where I was standing. "Hey you." She greeted warmly, allowing the bag on her shoulder to drop the floor next to her suitcase.

"Hey beautiful." I answered, leaning in to peck her lips in a short chaste kiss.

Naturally, the feeling of her lips on mine had me reeling. It was almost like I craved the feeling. Pushing that feeling aside, I reached to take her shoulder bag and we started to make our way out of the airport. "Shay told me to tell you she said 'hi'." She stated as we started to pack up my rental car.

"You know, she has been a wonderful thing for you. Ever since she came into your life, you've been happier."

"You are probably right. She has been great and we have found that we do have quite a few things in common. My mom absolutely loves her too and I think that has been beneficial for her as well...with everything that's happened to her."

"There is nothing wrong with that at all. When you've lost everything like she did, people like you and your mother are a wonderful blessing. You especially…"

She instantly stopped walking at the passenger side of the vehicle. There was an expression upon her face that was a mixture of awe and bewilderment. It made me think that maybe no one had ever told her that she was a blessing before. "What's wrong?" I asked, curious to see if she would tell me what I already knew.

"You really think I'm a blessing?"

Smiling, I walked around to her side of the car. Her denim jacket had slid partly off her shoulder from putting her bags into the trunk. The sight of her bare skin had revealed yet another new tattoo. This time is was of a red rose on an ancient scroll with words on the parchment, which I recognized as lyrics to her song 'Alive'.

I reached out to tuck hair behind her ear. "You are absolutely a blessing. You are one of the most selfless people I have ever met. I've watched you on countless occasions where you put someone else before yourself. You live to put a smile on someone's face. I know you always put one on mine."

"Thank you...I needed to hear that today."

"You're welcome." I answered, kissing her cheek.

She got into the passenger side of the car as I walked back around to get behind the wheel. The traffic was a nightmare as per usual for the nation's capital. We spent most of the trip to the arena talking about little things that interested us. The most she spoke the more I learned about her.

One of the things we talked about was Jayson and Hayley's wedding that was at the end of the month. She expressed her nervousness about being the Maid of Honor and the fact that Shay was joining her to sing their first dance song. To be honest I didn't understand her nervousness when she could sing her heart out in front of thousands of people and wrestle in front of just as many; but it was cute nonetheless.

"You know that you will do just fine. I have every confidence in that fact. Plus, I'll be there to."

"Oh...yes, I almost forgot that you will be in attendance." She said, trying to hold back the laughter in her voice.

"You're adorable."

Pulling into the parking area for talent, the reality of our world of wrestling was going to be live on TNT in a few hours. It was crazy to think about everything that happened up to this point. From wrestling in Japan, becoming the leader of The Bullet Club, forming The Elite with The Bucks and later on Cody Rhodes to leaving it all behind to join them in this crusade to give the world a new era of wrestling.

Karina exited the car and immediately ran to greet her new found friend in Brit Baker. I couldn't help but smile at the interaction. When I thought about just how far she has come since the day I met her, I was amazed. The passion I had seen her in eyes upon our first lock-up shone even brighter than ever before.

"Hey Kenny." Brit greeted.

"Hey. Are you ready for tonight?" I asked, truly wondering if she was.

"Absolutely, tonight is going to be epic."

She definitely wasn't wrong. Tonight was going to be epic. Karina took her leave and followed me inside. It wasn't long before Matt and Nick spotted us from down the hall. "I've got to find Tony. Matt said he wanted to speak to me when I got here." She said, which was news to me.

"Really? What about?" I asked.

"I guess he has an idea for me."

"Hey Karina, Tony is waiting for you at the end of the hall, first door on the right." Matt instructed.

She nodded and started to walk away. "Do you know what that is about?" I asked, hoping that one of them knew what the idea was. Of course, neither one knew. It left me in the dark until she returned from Tony's office.

It was even worse when she didn't return for a lengthy period of time. I was starting to get worried, so I decided to go looking for her. Adam Page was standing outside of Tony's office pacing, which was odd for him. "Hey, is Karina in there still?" I asked.

"Yeah, Cody and Brandi are as well." He answered, running a hand through his long blonde hair. He was already in his ring gear, preparing for the opening match between him and PAC.

"Do you know what's going on? She's been in there for quite a while."

"They are teaching her some production things and there is a storyline they are running by her, because it involves her."

It seemed like he knew more than he was saying. He also couldn't look me in the eye either. Did that mean that her storyline involved him as well? "Tell me, does that storyline involve you as well?"

"Tony feels like she would be a good asset for me to have. I highly doubt he knows that you two are an item though."

"We are all adults here and we all know the business. Storylines are just that...stories."

I had my answer. Running a hand over the top of my head, I pushed back the worries I had about it and the mistrust of Adam. He had never given me a reason to doubt him and I suppose this was a test for Karina and I as a couple.

She finally emerged from the office and met my gaze instantly. Her denim jacket was under her arm as she walked out of the room. "Looks like we will be working together, Adam." She said with a smile.

"Should be fun." He commented before giving us a moment alone.

"So that was Tony's idea, pairing you two onscreen?" I asked, waiting for a confirmation from her before accepting the awkward position I was now placed in.

"Yes, I will still be continuing my rivalry with Nyla; but my history with Adrian gave him the idea to involve me as well."

"Are you okay with that, because if you aren't, say something."

She closed the distance between us, placing her hands on my chest. Her lips were moist with gloss and ultimately tempting to kiss. "I'm okay with it. If I can help him, then I'm going to do that. No matter what happens, you are the one who holds my heart."

There were no words to describe what she had just expressed to me. Leaning down, I captured her lips with my own. The woman in my arms was beyond selfless and that was one of the many things I loved about her. How could I be upset with her wanting to help someone else? Even if that did mean that she would be working with Adam closely.


	3. Miscommunication

**A/N: A special thanks goes to peace486 and okaloosa for becoming followers and BreakTheWalls for the wonderful review. Onto number three, let me know what you think.**

**** Warning: A little mature content in this chapter.****

**Chapter 3:**

**Miscommunication**

**Karina**

It wasn't long before it was show time. The butterflies in my stomach had fluttered their way to my throat. I was anxious and everyone in the room with me knew it. Kenny and Cody were working diligently on making sure everything was running smoothly. Matt and Nick were positioned behind the screens near the gorilla entryway.

The opening match was between Cody and Sammy Guevara, which had changed from the original line-up. Shifting my body so I could see the screens fully, Kenny eyed me with a soft expression I hadn't seen before. It almost seemed like he was upset about something. Was the whole storyline pairing with Adam bothering him? Or was it something else he wasn't telling me? I hated the thought of him upset with me.

"Alright everyone, let's show the world that we mean business and that we aren't going anywhere!" Cody encouraged.

We all clapped and cheered with anticipation for the start of the show. I swallowed the lump in my throat as the opening segment began, welcoming the crowd to the AEW Dynamite. Jim Ross, Excalibur and Tony Shiavone were placed neatly behind their own separate table on the right side of the stage.

Justin Roberts stood in the middle of the ring waiting to do talent introductions and all I could do was watch, hoping that I wouldn't mess anything up tonight. Insecurity in my own ability was starting to migrate through my mind. Turning away from the group, I moved to lean against the wall running a hand over my face while fumbling with my hands nervously.

Brandi eyed me cautiously. Concern was written all over her face; but she moved to follow her husband out to the ring for the opening contest. My chest was tightening the longer I stood in silence. How was I going to be of any use to any of them like this?

I felt a hand on my shoulder and my head snapped up instantly. Adam stood there with a soft expression. His blue eyes lingered on me. "Don't let all of this get to you. He will be fine. To be honest, I doubt Tony even knew that you two are a couple when he pitched the idea of you working with me."

"He looks so hurt. It's almost like he feels betrayed by me."

"I highly doubt that's the case. Even if it was, just assure him that everything will be fine. He isn't the most confident person in matters of relationships."

Adam wasn't wrong in that notion. Hell, I wasn't confident in relationships either. Especially after what Adrian had done to me in the two years we were together. He gave my shoulder a little squeeze before turning his attention back to the group. The tightness in my chest released and I felt so much better.

I returned to the group and stood next to Kenny, taking his hand into my own. He looked away from the screen and met my eyes. His lips turned into a smile and it made my heart flutter. It was weird, I had never felt like this before in any of my prior relationships. I didn't want these feelings to ever fade away. He already meant too much to me.

**Kenny**

The AEW Women's World Championship match between Riho and Nyla Rose was underway. Matt and Nick were still sitting behind the screens while I hovered over them. It was the first moment that it was just the three of us in the production area. "So is everything okay?" Matt asked suddenly.

"With what?" I asked, confused as to what he was talking about.

"Karina. It was a little tense earlier."

I let out a sigh. I should have known they would have seen the difference in us at the start of the show. My own insecurities were starting to show through the walls I had built around myself. I've never felt like this before with a woman and this was one of the reasons I had stayed away from relationships for so long.

"I don't fault her for wanting to help someone; but I can't shake the feeling that her pairing with Adam is going to end us before it truly gets started."

"Have you told her that?" Nick asked, keeping one eye on the screen and the other on me.

"No, I don't want to upset her."

Riho getting the three count caught our attention away from the conversation. I smiled, obviously proud of her accomplishment. Nyla returned to her feet and attacked Riho from behind. A blur of aquamarine rushed down the ramp. Karina struck Nyla hard across the jaw, creating distance between Riho and the larger woman.

There was stunned look upon her child-like face. Hell, I was surprised to see Karina. Had they added this segment last minute before my appearance. Nyla slammed Karina hard to the mat. She then turned her over and drug her to the outside of the ring. There was bad intentions written on the face of the Native Beast.

"Go." Matt signaled.

I rushed down the ramp, pulling Karina out of Nyla's grasp and then shoved her. She smirked wickedly, proud of her destruction. Riho crawled over to the fallen Karina, placing a hand on her shoulder. There were tears in her eyes that were perfectly hidden by Riho's body. The crowd cheered once she got back to her feet.

Once we got back to the backstage area, Riho spoke to me in her native tongue. She was concerned about Karina, which was justified, because so was I. The trainers took Karina back to their room to get a better look at her and it sucked that I couldn't go with her. My match with The Bucks was coming up fairly quickly.

**Karina**

My head was throbbing; but other than that I was perfectly fine. No signs of a concussion thankfully. I had been careless and damn near botched one of the most simplest moves for a wrestler to perform. The door opened and Cody stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame with his arms crossed over his chest. "Are you okay?" He asked softly, his eyes never leaving mine.

"I'm fine...just incrediably stupid."

"You were nervous, it happens."

"It doesn't help when I know Kenny is mad at me for something."

He chuckled lightheartedly before stepping fully into the room. Pulling the chair up closer to the table I was sitting on, he then proceeded to sit down on the chair. "He's not mad at you. He's protective. I'm sure he isn't thrilled with Tony's idea to pair you with Hangman."

"I'm not thrilled with it either. I didn't come here to be a manager. I came to show the world that I was still as good as I had been all those years ago in WWE."

"I know."

The sound of knocking came from the open door. We both looked up to see Tony standing there, big black glasses on his face. I lowered my head back down to the clasped hands across my lap. "I'm sorry, I kind of overheard your conversation." He interrupted, practically admitting that he had been eavesdropping on the things we had spoken about. I refused to meet his gaze for fear I'd lose my composure.

"Karina, I'm sorry. I should have taken your feelings into consideration. If you don't want to do the manager role, you don't have to. There is another idea I have that I think may work better for you."

In that moment, I looked up from my lap to meet his gaze. There was sincerity written on his facial features. There was a TV screen in the room hanging in the corner by the entryway of the room. I could see Kenny in the ring signalling for a V-Trigger. The crowd started to cheer a lot louder for a typical move he was known to do several times in a match and that's when I saw him. Jon Moxley.

Tony turned to see what I was looking at and knew that I would no longer be paying attention to what he was going to say about a new idea for me. I was fully concentrated on watching Jon and Kenny beat the hell out of each other, taking the fight clear out into the arena. Shades of 'The Cleaner' persona came out in Kenny and my heart started to pound inside my chest. It wasn't until Jon planted Kenny through a glass table, did I realize what he had been hiding from me.

"How come no one told me Jon was back?" I asked, clenching my jaw tightly.

"I thought you knew. Kenny was supposed to tell you."

"Clearly, he didn't."

I slid off the table and proceeded to walk towards the exit. "Where are you going?" Cody asked, standing up from the chair. "I need to be alone." I snapped, then stormed off towards the women's locker-room.

Pushing the door open, I immediately found my belongings. Pulling my phone out, there were four text messages waiting for me. One from Hayley, one from Jayson and two from Shay. Tucking my phone in my back pocket, I mentally told myself to answer them once I got to the hotel and in my room.

Lifting the handle up on my bag, I pulled it behind me as I walked out of the room. There was so much going on inside my head that I almost failed to see Jon walking towards me. There was a smirk on his face that I just couldn't find the humor in at that moment. "Good to see you, Karina." He greeted.

"Glad you're all healed up." I answered honestly.

"Yeah me to. So you have a feud with that Nyla Rose, I take it?"

"Yeah...I fucked up tonight and damn near got my ass knocked out. I'm beginning to wonder if it was a good idea to come back to the ring."

"Bullshit, you know that you are damn good in that ring."

Jon giving me a pep talk was not something I had expected; but at the same time, it was something I needed. He reached for me, pulling me into a tight embrace. "Oh, I heard your new song on the radio. I really dig it, so did Renee. It was about Omega, right?"

"Thank you...yes...it was…"

His phone started to ring and he took his leave to answer the call. I was alone once again. These unanswered questions were tormenting me and the only person who held the answers was Kenny, which meant I needed to find him.

Turning back around, I entered the trainers room. Kenny was sitting on the table having his head looked at, while Riho was sitting in the chair next to him. There was concern written all over her face. She spoke to him in Japanese and he answered in the same language. The sight of them together made my heart fall to my stomach.

"Karina…" He whispered; but loud enough that everyone could hear him.

"I'll just talk to you later...looks like you don't need me for anything."

I backed out of the room, burning tears rolling down my cheeks. Pulling my bag behind me, I went looking for Brit in hopes she'd give me a ride to the hotel. Instead of finding her, I found Adam. He was dressed in light colored jeans and a black button up western style shirt. His long hair was down across his shoulders.

The second he saw me, his facial expression changed instantly. "What's wrong?" He asked, wrapping an arm around me. "Would you mind taking me to the hotel?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Uh...sure…"

I followed him out of the building. Curling my bottom lip under my top one, he opened the passenger door to his rental car and allowed me to get inside. Adam quickly got behind the driver side and started the ignition. "I'm not going to ask what happened; but if you want to talk, I'll listen." He offered.

"I was foolish to think anyone could ever just want me."

"Karina...Kenny does want you. The man never shuts up about you."

"Then explain to me what his relationship with Riho is?"

The second her name rolled off my tongue, his expression changed once again. There was silence between us and it got me thinking that there was something there that Adam didn't want to tell me. "It's complicated and even I don't know all the details on it. I think it's something you guys need to talk about moving forward. There needs to be full communication or this will never work."

"I've been completely honest about my past...why can't he?"

"I don't have an answer to that."

Adam changed lanes to get across traffic so he could turn into the parking lot of the hotel where all talent was staying. He pulled up front, so he could allow me to go inside. "I'm going back to the arena to get my stuff. I forgot to grab it. Text me if you need to talk more, I'll be more than willing to listen further." He offered as I got out of the car.

"Thank you." I answered, closing the door behind me. He drove off and I turned to enter the hotel lobby.

**Kenny**

"She left!" I shouted, finally getting a chance to speak with Cody and The Bucks.

"Yeah, Hangman took her to the hotel. He's on his way back to get his own bags." Matt confirmed.

"Fucking Page took her. What the hell?"

Speaking of Hangman, he reentered the building. His eyes met mine and stopped walking to second he saw the anger obviously written on my own face. "Look, Kenny...she asked me to take her. She was crying, what was I supposed to do?" He asked, putting his hands up innocently.

I let out of defeated sigh and ran a hand through my tangled hair. This whole situation was a mess and I knew that I needed to fix it or I was going to lose Karina. That was something I wasn't willing to let go. "What happened to send her running in the first place?" Nick asked. He was obviously trying to understand what exactly was going on.

"Karina came into the trainers room when I was being looked at after the glass table spot. Riho was in the room with me."

"Ah...you haven't explained that relationship to her yet." Matt jokingly said, giving a slight nudge with his elbow.

"With all jokes aside, you should probably talk to her. She was pretty upset." Adam said, patting my shoulder before walking down the hall to grab his own things.

After filming a few things for BTE, I was finally behind the wheel of my rental car. Entering the lobby, I quietly asked the receptionist what room Karina was staying in. She was hesitant in telling me; but in the end, I eventually got my answer.

Getting to the fifth floor, I slowly walked down the long hallway before stopping at 517. Balling my hand into a fist, I knocked quietly. After a few seconds, the door opened and Karina stood before me. Her long hair was over her shoulder, covering the right side of her chest. She was dressed in a lavender colored ribbed tank top with a pair of black cotton shorts.

"Hey." I greeted softly.

"Hi…"

"Can we talk?"

She wordlessly stepped aside to allow me inside. Once inside, she closed the door and walked passed me to sit down on the small couch near the large window. The TV was on; however, it was on a very low volume. Her laptop was positioned on the edge of the coffee table, open to reveal what she had been doing before I arrived. The Skype call had ended; but it meant that she had been talking to someone.

"I'm sorry. I can't imagine how that looked to you." I apologized.

"No...you really can't. Considering all I've been through in my life, of course the worst would come to mind first."

"I'm not seeing her. I've known her since she was nine years old. She's been my tag team partner on numerous occasions over in Japan. She's a good friend, nothing romantic at all...I promise."

I sat down beside her, taking her hands into my own. She pulled her hands away and got to her knees, leaning in closer to me. Her hand reached for the back of my head, feeling the bump that had formed during the glass table spot. "Are you okay?" She asked, curling her fingers through my hair.

"I'm fine. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay, just careless…"

She opened her mouth to say something else; but I cut her off by placing my lips on hers. My hand curled behind her head, cradling it, while my other hand pressed against her back. She shifted to straddle my lap. Every movement of ours lips against each other, only seemed to intensify the desire between us. To be honest, I didn't know if she was ready for this step in our relationship. All I knew was that I wanted her.

Karina rolled her hips against me, creating friction on my lower half. Sucking in a breath, it turned into a low moan. Moving my lips to the shallow of her neck and collar bone, my hand slid under the hem of her top. If she wanted me to stop, I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to.

She tugged up on the base of my shirt, lifting it up over my head. Her fingertips roamed, taking in every detail before she leaned down to place her lips on the center of my chest. I watched eagerly as she continued to get lower, stopping at the belt line.

With another groan, I lightly pushed her back until she was laying beneath me. The rest felt like a dream. Our clothes continued to disappear until there was nothing left. The feeling of her skin against mine was indescribable and beyond the most enjoyable experience.

Her head rested against my bare chest. My arm wrapped loosely around her naked body. "I'm sorry for thinking the worst." She apologized, snuggling into the crook of my arm. I smiled, leaning down to kiss her forehead.

"It's okay. I completely understand how it looked and I'm sorry for not telling you about my friendship with Riho."

"I don't want to be one of those paranoid girlfriends."

"Trust me...I'm not Adrian and I'm not going to hurt you that way."

She smiled, kissing my arm before getting up. I watched her walk to the bed and pull the covers down. Getting up, I moved across the room to join her. I wrapped my arms around her from behind, kissing her shoulder. "Are you going to stay?" She asked softly.

"If you want me to."

Her silent nod was my answer. She crawled into the bed and I crawled in next to her, immediately pulling her back to me. I didn't want this night to end. My feelings for her were continuing to grow, perhaps I was even falling hard without ever realizing. Hey eyes closed and her soft breathing was a lull for me to fall asleep too, though I wanted to just watch her sleep. Unfortunately, that didn't happen for long. My tired body took control and I fell asleep with her in my arms.


	4. Explosion

**A/N: A special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls and Leasha Ambrose for the wonderful reviews. Another special thanks goes to ClassicPurpleRoses for becoming a follower to this story. On to number four, let me know what you think.**

**** The Lyrics in this belong to me, I wrote them.****

**Chapter 4:**

**Explosion**

**Kenny**

I awoke to the feeling of warm flesh against my back. Smiling, I rolled over to come face to face with my sleeping girlfriend. The sight of her asleep just made me smile that much harder. Unfortunately, I knew that I didn't have much time with her. I knew that she had a flight to New York City later on. SiriusXM Octane was interviewing Celestial as a band tomorrow morning, which I knew was an honor for her.

Karina opened her eyes slowly, moving her hands to her face almost instantly. She groaned out of annoyance. "Morning sunshine." I greeted her warmly, scooting a little closer and placed my lips on her cheek.

"Morning." She answered, fully alert now.

"How did you sleep?"

"Perfectly."

Smiling upon her answer, I kissed her lips once and then twice. Her skin was still so warm and so inviting. I was more than willing to have a repeat of what happened last night; but I knew we really didn't have the time. "I really don't want to get out of this bed." She grumbled.

"Neither do I; but you have that interview to go to. I know you don't want to miss that."

"No, I don't. I also don't want to be away from you either."

Wrapping my arms around her, I held her tightly. It was hard to believe that I met her at the end of May and here we were, October 3rd, in a relationship that neither one of us saw coming. She snuggled her head into my chest, shying away from sight. "So I need to tell you something." She said in a muffled voice.

"What's that?" I asked, sliding my body back a few centimeters so she had to lift her head back up to face me.

She rolled over to the edge of the bed and got up. Her naked body was entirely in my view. Mentally groaning at the control I was having to enforce upon myself. Unzipping her bag, she quickly got dressed before digging further into her bag for something. She pulled out a small white card that looked like something that would be attached to flowers.

Returning to the bed, she sat down on the edge and handed the card to me. She was no longer smiling, which meant this wasn't something good. I sat up immediately to read this with my full attention.

"October 2nd, the day karma will come around.

I'll take them out one by one, leaving you alone.

Just like you left me."

My good mood instantly went sour. I looked at her and all I could see was the tears forming in her eyes. "When did you get this?" I asked, trying to keep my voice as calm as I possibly could. She moved her hands across her face, catching the tears before they fell. "I got it the night I had my last performance. Shay and I came home to flowers on my kitchen island. This card was attached. Of course he didn't sign it; but I knew exactly who it was from."

"That was almost three weeks ago!" I shouted, without meaning to.

"I know, I'm sorry...I wanted to tell you...I just didn't know how to."

"Karina, this is serious...you should have fucking told me the instant you found it."

She quickly got up from the bed, the tears were no longer there. Instead, there was anger radiating from her. Her eyes were narrowed and bore straight through me. "This is exactly why I didn't tell you sooner. I wanted to avoid this kind of reaction from you." She yelled back, clenching her hands tightly at her sides.

"My reaction is justified. He abused you, Karina. This is a threat, even if it is meant to scare you...you should be taking it more seriously than you are."

"I know damn well what he did to me! I fucking lived it! This is the very reason why I stayed away from relationships after him...the arguments and right now, I can't deal with any of it...I'm sorry; but maybe this was a mistake."

"Karina…"

She lifted the handle of her bag and hoisted her shoulder bag up before walking out of the room entirely. The door slammed shut behind her and I was left alone in her hotel room. Running a hand through my tangled hair and then down my face, the harsh reality that I just drove her away had just set it. How was I going to explain this to everyone else? I had no doubt that Adrian would be loving it when the word got around that we broke up, if that was indeed what just happened.

**Karina**

I had stormed out of the room before I could even do anything with my hair, so I tucked into the lobby bathroom. The person reflecting back at me was truly pathetic. My eyes were bloodshot and there were puffy bags under them. Reaching down into my shoulder bag, I grabbed my make-up bag. There was no way I was going anywhere looking like this.

My phone vibrated against the granite countertop, indicating a message had come through. I simply ignored it, there were more pressing things at the moment. If it was important, then that person would have just called.

Applying make-up, it got me thinking that maybe I overreacted during that fight in my room. However, I also felt like he really didn't understand why I held off from telling him about the card. I also felt like he didn't understand me and the issues I go through on a daily basis. Closing my eyes, I leaned back for a moment. I could feel the anxiety deep inside me bubble to the surface. My chest started to tighten and pretty soon the room was starting to feel claustrophobic.

"Karina." A familiar voice called.

Britt's face came into view just before I collapsed to my knees. She slid across the floor to get me quicker, holding me in her arms. She didn't ask me what was wrong, all she did was comfort me until the attack passed. Once it did, I burst into tears. "It's okay, hunnie. Where is Kenny?" She asked.

"I don't know...we...had...a fight." I sobbed, choking on my own words.

"I assume the fight triggered this. I'm surprised how long you put up a fight during the attack. Perhaps, you will learn how to bring yourself out of them on your own someday."

She helped me to my feet and, once again, my make-up was ruined. Britt smiled and took control of the situation. My hands were still shaky at best and I was thankful that she had walked in when she did. "I don't know what I'd do without you today." I admitted, when she had finished up with what little make-up I wanted.

"You're welcome. I'm glad I showed up when I did."

She moved to wrap me into a hug. A hug that was much needed. I shoved the smaller bag back inside my shoulder bag and proceeded to walk out of the bathroom with Britt trailing right behind me. "I'll see you soon, okay. Keep your head up, I'm sure it was just a fight and you guys will make up in no time at all. You guys are just too damn cute not too."

I wanted to tell her that she was right; but there was a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach that was telling me a completely different story. The uber I had called was parked right up front outside the hotel doors. Tossing my bags inside, I told the driver exactly where I needed to go.

**Kenny**

It had been twenty-four hours already and there was not a single word spoken between Karina and I. Opening the front door to my home in Winnipeg, I couldn't help but feel empty. Matt and Nick both assumed it was just an argument, that things would go back to normal once she's had time to cool down; but somehow I felt like that that wasn't the case with her this time. "I suppose I could listen to her interview." I told myself, walking into the living room to turn on the stereo system.

"It's time. I'm Kayla Riley and I have an exclusive interview with newcomer band Celestial for all of you listeners. Welcome guys."

"Thank you for inviting us." Jayson answered, while the others agreed quietly behind him.

"You want to introduce yourself."

"Landon Hale, Bass." Landon introduced first.

"Hayley Peirce, Drums."

"Jayson Riddick, Guitar."

"Karina Dawson, Vocals."

Upon hearing her speak, I sat down on the edge of the couch. Normally, I would play a video game the second I walked through the door; but this time was different, I really wanted to hear the interview and maybe even learn a few things about her that I didn't know. "You guys really just burst onto the scene with the single 'Alive'. I understand you've been a band for a couple years and did shows here and there; but nothing solid."

"Yeah, at first this was kind of an escape for me mentally. I had just gotten out of an abusive relationship and was released from the WWE. Jayson, Hayley and I had been childhood friends, so we decided to do this for real. I'm having a blast so far." Karina answered. There was a smile in her voice and I wished that I could see it for myself.

"Landon, how did you come to join?" Kayla asked.

"At first, I was a singer with Karina. I stepped away from a little while to decide if that was what I wanted to do, in the end I came back to fill in the void of lost bassiest. I wouldn't change a thing."

My phone chimed from inside the pocket of my jeans. I reached inside to retrieve the device. There was a message from Matt waiting for my viewership.**_"Have you heard from Karina yet?" _**

**"_No."_** I quickly typed back and hit the send button.

"Who is your influence that sparked the music bug?" Kayla asked.

"I think each one of us would have a different answer." Karina replied.

She wasn't wrong. Each one of them had a different talent, so their influences would be different. Landon, Jayson and Hayley answered the question in that order. Karina was the last one to answer and to be honest, I was probably the most interested in this question out of the other ones Kayla had asked.

"Lita Ford was probably one of earlier influences. I simply loved the fact that she could be beautiful and still be this badass rocker chick. Later on, it became the voices of Amy Lee and Maria Brink, mixed with a newcomer herself Alecia 'Mixi' Demmer."

"I understand that you are also a wrestler for the new company AEW. Is there anything you can tell me about what made you decide to step back into the ring again?"

Swallowing hard, I knew this question was going to be a difficult one for her to answer. If I was honest, I didn't even know the real reason she decided to step back into the ring again. "I am, I signed a three year contract with them back in July. We were actually supposed to perform at one of their shows in June; but due to reasons out of my control we were unable to. I got to see what they were all about and the bug just returned. One of their Executive Vice Presidents, helped get back into ring shape and here I am."

"Last question. If you could have any artist do an entrance song for you, who would it be?"

"Right now, since my character is about to take a turn...In This Moment for sure. Maria would no doubt nail an eerie entrance song for my character."

"Alright, thank you for joining me. You can catch them on tour in the summer to celebrate the release of their debut album 'Concrete Rose' on August 21st. Here is a brand new track called 'Dead Again'."

Wait! A new song. She hadn't told me about that either, nor did she tell me about the release date of the album. Obviously, there were plenty of things she didn't tell me. I knew that I should be mad; but I just couldn't bring myself to feel the emotion when I could hear her beautiful voice playing through my speakers.

"One day, you will be here

One day, we will come face to face

Until then, I'll be dead again…

Dead

Dead

Dead

Will you find me in the chaos of hell

Or will you find me in the peace of heaven."

Leaning back against the back of the couch, I closed my eyes envisioning her actually singing those words. There was no doubt in my mind that this song was about her brother, Haden. I knew that it was quickly approaching his death anniversary, no wonder she made this song their second single.

I wanted to comfort her. I wanted to be there with her; but I knew that I couldn't that I had to let her come to me in her own time. If there was one thing I did know about Karina, it was that I couldn't push her to do something. She had to do it on her own. Hopefully, I don't have to wait forever.


	5. Amaranthine

**A/N: A special thanks goes to xXxShonxXx for becoming a follower to this story. Another special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls and Leasha Ambrose for the wonderful reviews. Happy belated Valentines Day everyone. I hope you all enjoyed it. Onto number five, let me know what you think.**

****The lyrics in this chapter belong to Amaranthe, I do not own them.****

**Chapter 5:**

**Amaranthine**

**Karina**

Music blared into the buds in my ears as I ran on the treadmill. Shay was running on the machine next to me at the gym. It's been three weeks since I walked out on Kenny in my hotel room back in D.C. Cody told me to take some personal time to gather my bearings. It actually worked out well for the storyline with Nyla anyway.

My character was about to change, heading towards a darker version of myself. I was going to return on the October 30th episode of Dynamite, the day before my birthday; but first I had to get through Jayson and Hayley's wedding tomorrow. Kenny had been invited and I had no idea if he was still going to attend the event in light of everything that had happened between us.

I wasn't going to lie to myself and say that I was fine, because I was far from it. I missed him dearly. The way he had raised his voice at me triggered all kinds of memories from my past with Adrian. I know that I had missed his birthday and that tore me up inside. I was falling apart and if it hadn't been for Shay, who knows what would have happened to me.

As per Nick and Matt's request, I sent them small segments of what was going on with me since I was away from the ring. I was still a part of The Elite despite the explosion personally between two of its members.

The timer on the machine went off and my run was officially over. Shay pulled a bud out of her ear, as did I. The sweat was evident on our faces as we stepped down from the machine. "Are you okay?" She asked, handing me a towel from my bag sitting on the bench behind where we stood.

"I'm as good as I'm going to get."

"Why don't you just talk to him? I hate seeing you this torn up."

"I can't...you have no idea how horrible I behaved towards him. I don't think...I could even face him at this point.

Shay looked at me, giving a sympathetic glance in my direction. It didn't matter, because I was always going to hold onto this guilt. I guess I never wanted to admit that Adrian really damaged me and now I lost the one thing that made me truly feel alive again. There was no forgiving that.

Turning to grab my bag, I could see two familiar faces approaching us. Matt and Nick Jackson. Shay followed suit and moved her head to see who I was looking at. A smile appeared on her face as if she knew that they were coming. Unless, it was her that called them here in the first place. If I had to guess, it was probably the latter.

"Karina Dawson, long time no see." Nick greeted me warmly, moving to pull me into a hug.

"Yeah, it had been awhile. I'm sorry for that." I answered, trying to avoid the elephant in the room.

"Can we talk somewhere?" Matt asked, approaching me with a hug of his own.

"Sure, is my house okay?"

They both agreed to follow us back to my house. Shay sat in the passenger seat as I got behind the wheel of my new silver 2020 Hyundai Kona SUV. It was kind of like an early birthday present to myself. "You called them, didn't you?" I questioned, starting the ignition.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't play that with me, Shay. You called them, why?"

"Because you aren't yourself. I know damn well that you miss Kenny and since I can't talk some sense into you, maybe they can."

Mentally groaning at her reasons, I also noted that she was probably right to some extent. She wasn't wrong when she said that I hadn't been myself since the fight; but that was to be expected, right?

Pulling into my driveway, Nick pulled in right behind me. This was the first time they had been to my residence since befriending them five months prior. Unlocking my front door, I allowed everyone inside. Shay immediately took her shoes off at the door and ran up the stairs, leaving me alone with them.

"Shay is concerned about you." Nick admitted, following me into the kitchen.

"I know...she's young. She doesn't understand how certain things in the world work just yet."

"Kenny is a wreck. Have you seen the clips of him in BTE? That loss against PAC, his match with Jon at Full Gear and losing you had thrown him into a downward spiral." Matt continued.

Sitting down on one of the bar stools against the kitchen island, I let out a sigh while running a hand through my hair. "You came all the way out here to tell me this?" I asked, trying to keep my composure without being thrown into an anxiety attack.

"Not entirely, we came for Jayson and Hayley's wedding too."

"I didn't realize they invited you guys too. Did they invite anyone else from the company?"

"Cody and Brandi as well. You already know they invited Kenny. All five of us are here for the wedding. Tomorrow might be a good day to put this fight behind you both and move forward." Matt suggested.

**Kenny**

Today was Jayson and Hayley's wedding. It was a special day for them as a couple; but it was also a chance to see Karina after three weeks of not seeing her at all, other than the clips she sent Nick for BTE. Even watching her through those videos, there was something off with her. Her smile didn't seem as genuine as it used to be.

Sitting down next Matt in one of the third row chairs, the set up was beautiful. The pond behind the arch was a wonderful touch to the forest-like scenery. The chairs were decorated with silver cloth and wrapped with deep red bows.

Cody and Brandi made their way to where Matt, Nick and I were sitting and sat down on the other side of Nick in the third row. Shay and Karina's mother, Rachel, were sitting in the front row. Both were wearing red dresses. I was actually surprised that there weren't more people invited to this event. It kind of made me feel guilty, because I had gotten an invite, despite not knowing them all that well.

Jayson stood at the arch. His dark brown hair was slicked back with gel. His tuxedo was grey with a red tie, matching the chair bows. He looked nervous and rightfully so. It was truly a big step to commit to someone for the rest of your life.

Once music started to play, every single person stood up out of respect for the bride. Karina stood with Landon, arms hooked. Her dress was the same red, matching the chair bows and Jayson's tie. The fabric hugged her figure perfectly, while her hair was in up in curls with a single braid wrapped around the curls.

She was absolutely beautiful. An image of her naked body beneath mine flashed behind my eyes for a moment. The scent of her perfume waved under my nose the moment she walked past us. Her smile was glowing with happiness for her best friends.

It was then that Hayley made her appearance. The silver of her dress was perfect for her features and the way her hair had been done reminded me of Belle from Beauty and the Beast, which I'm sure had been the inspiration considering the rose was tattooed on her right shoulder blade.

Hayley joined Jayson at the front of the arch. The love for each radiated off them and all it did was make me smile. Karina turned her head in my direction and our eyes finally met for the first time in three weeks. There was a single tear rolling down her left cheek and it took everything I had not to walk up there and wipe it away. It wasn't a tear of sadness. It was a tear of joy.

"We are gathered here today to join Jayson Riddick and Hayley Peirce in holy matrimony." The pastor announced.

The ceremony was beautiful and exactly how I expected it to be. The reception was where I hoped to speak to Karina on some level. Cody approached me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay?" He asked, continuing to walk beside me as we made our way back towards the parked vehicles.

"I'm fine."

"I know this can't be easy, perhaps things are different now. You should at least talk to her."

"I intend to."

The five of us separated into two different cards for the short drive to the building that held the reception. Inside, there were several round tables organized by names. Of course, the five of us were at the same table. Once again, the decor was silver and red. The DJ was neatly placed at a table near the head table where the bridal party would sit.

After some time of waiting, which I assume was because they were out getting photos taken, the DJ announced their arrival. Karina stepped through the curtain with Landon next to her. He seemed awfully comfortable next to her, it made me cringe mentally.

The bride and groom walked through the curtain hand in hand. Everyone clapped and cheered for them. The bridal party made their way to their table and sat down. After a few minutes of discussion between the DJ and Jayson, he finally announced that Karina and Shay would be performing the first dance song after dinner.

We were able to go up to the buffet table by table. The bridal table was first followed by the DJ. "Kenny, how are you?" Shay asked, approaching our table with a smile on her face. I returned the gesture and wrapped her up in a hug.

"I'm okay, how are you and Karina doing?" I asked, trying to make light of the opportunity to ask about Karina.

"I'm doing fine, can't say the same for Karina though."

Before I could even ask, she was called away by Rachel. It probably was a blessing in disguise. It was best to ask the questions to Karina herself instead of her sister. It was finally our table's turn to go up for food. Thank goodness, I was starved.

**Karina**

Eating wasn't in the cards for me. My stomach was in knots with the pressure I would be under in a matter of minutes. All I could think about was Kenny. He was sitting there with all the other Elite members, conversing while still holding a touch of sadness behind those blue eyes I loved so much.

Shay moved towards the stage where Brady, the DJ, was setting up for our performance. I slid the chair out and stood up. Humming softly as I walked. The lights dimmed down, letting the people know they should keep their voices down.

Hayley and Jayson stood in the middle of the floor, holding each other closely. I held the microphone tightly in my hand, moving it up to my lips...waiting for the music to start.

_"Time_

_Is the reason why we fight to stay alive_

_Until the morning comes_

_It's a strife_

_But the shimmer in your eyes just makes me know_

_That you and I belong_

_And you can light the dark all by your own_

_So let us show the world our love is strong_

_Like a sign_

_Like a dream_

_You're my amaranthine_

_You are all I needed, believe me_

_Like we drift in a stream_

_Your beauty serene_

_There's nothing else_

_In life I ever need_

_My dream, amaranthine."_

The music became a little heavier, still soft enough to be considered a ballad. Shay took over vocals for the second verse of the song. My eyes shifted, looking for Kenny. I didn't have to look long because his eyes were upon me already. The guilt inside was starting to boil over again and there was nothing I wanted more than for it to go away.

Lifting the microphone back to my lips, preparing for the harsh side of my voice to be used. Jayson and Hayley's smiles were perfect and reflected what they meant to each other. I envied that about them, at least on the inside I did.

_"It's a strife_

_But the shimmer in your eyes makes me know_

_You're my amaranthine."_ I growled.

_"Like a sign_

_Like a dream_

_You're my amaranthine_

_You are all I needed, believe me."_ Shay sang.

_"Like a sign_

_Like a dream_

_You're my amaranthine_

_You are all I needed, believe me_

_Like we drift in a stream_

_Your beauty serene_

_There's nothing else_

_In life I ever need_

_My dream, amaranthine."_ We both sang together. I held the microphone up until the last piano note sounded.

Jayson kissed Hayley sweetly before turning towards the crowd of people forming around the edge of the tables. Kenny was among those people. I handed the microphone back to Brady and started to walk away. He told everyone to enjoy themselves and started to play music for everyone to dance to on the open floor.

Tucking inside the bathroom, I stared at the mirror in front of me. The person reflecting back wasn't me at all. It was an empty shell of who I used to be. I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream; but there was no point in any of those things. Today wasn't about me. Today was about my best friends on their perfect day of happiness.

Touching the corners of my eyes gently, I cleared the wetness that had formed there. Opening the door, I walked back out into the crowd of people. Hayley was standing by Brady, reaching for his microphone. It confused me, because this hadn't been part of the rehearsal. "Karina, could you come stand out here please." She called for me.

I weaved through the people to get to the middle of the open floor, exactly how she instructed. Kenny was already standing there. I stopped, searching Hayley's glance for an answer. "If there is one thing I want on my special day, it's my best friend's happiness. The way you two look at each other reminds me of Jayson and I. There are no other words to describe it other than love. He has healed you on levels Jayson and I could never dream of reaching."

"Hayley…" I said softly, feeling the warm tears starting to form in my eyes again.

"I want the same happiness I have for you and I truly believe Kenny is that happiness for you." She continued.

"Karina…" Kenny called, holding his hand out to me.

Halsey's song 'Finally / beautiful stranger' started to play. I accepted his hand. He pulled me close, holding me in his arms. We moved across the floor slowly. His touch was exactly what I needed, at the same time the tears I desperately tried to hold back fell down my cheeks. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. I can't imagine how you felt or what you were thinking about. I promised you that I was nothing like Adrian and I...yelled at you."

"I yelled too."

"You had every reason to be defensive. I just don't want anything to happen to you."

"I know and I'm sorry for walking out on you."

He curled his fingers around my waist. I rested my hand on his chest, right above his beating heart. Hayley couldn't have picked a better song in attempts to mend our relationship. I didn't have a chance to think further, because his lips found mine in a matter of seconds. The feelings of them on mine ignited a fire within me. The same fire I had felt before with him and I knew. I just knew that I was falling for him.

Our lips separated and he leaned his forehead down upon mine. We had an entire crowd of people watching us and it didn't even matter to me, because he was holding me. I knew the end of the song was coming and my mouth opened to sing the last few lines of the song for him to hear.

_"Beautiful stranger_

_Here you are in my arms and I know_

_That beautiful strangers_

_Only come along to do me wrong I hope_

_Beautiful stranger, here you are in my arms_

_And I think it's finally_

_Finally, finally, finally, finally safe_

_For me to fall."_

He smiled, kissing my forehead then my cheek before whispering in my ear…"You are safe to fall…" making my heart pound against my chest. The crowd clapped upon the ending of our dance. Hayley had a bright smile as well as Jayson. I loved them dearly for doing this for me.

Kenny tangled his fingers through mine as we walked back towards the DJ table. I wrapped Hayley up into a tight embrace. There were no words to describe how I was feeling and how grateful I was to have them in my life. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The rest of the night was spent with a smile on my face. Dancing and conversing with people that matter the most to me. There was nothing better than that in the world. Kenny never left my side, showering me with chaste kisses and loving touches. This was the perfect way to make up for lost time between us. "Oh, happy belated birthday." I said, turning in my seat to face him directly.

"Thank you. Don't worry about missing it. They aren't that special anymore since I'm in my late thirties now."

"Nonsense. Birthdays are always special and I promise I'll make up for it tonight."

"Oh? Is that so?"

He raised a coy eyebrow up at me, teasing me on what he knew I meant by the statement. Heat rushed to my cheeks instantly at the thought of intimacy with him again. His hand discreetly moved up my thigh over the silken fabric of my dress. "You realize there is still the cutting of the cake yet." I whispered to him, placing my hand on top of his.

"I know, just testing the waters."

"You're terrible."

He softly chuckled to himself as we paid attention to the happily married couple as they proceeded to cut their cake with smiles upon their faces.


	6. Returning Home

**A/N: A special thanks goes to HolytsNicole for becoming a follower to this story. Another special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls for the wonderful review. This chapter is very special to me in quite a few different ways. Most of this will be in Kenny's point of view. I hope you all enjoy it and let me know what you think.**

**Chapter 6:**

**Returning Home**

**Kenny**

Days after Jayson and Hayley's wedding, Karina had taken a turn. She was quiet and more reserved than I had ever seen her before. She would tremble in my arms and all I could do was hold her. October 30th was the six year anniversary of Haden's death. I knew her behaviour was normal; but it tore me up inside to see her so crushed. Shay took some of her pain away; however, there was nothing that could soothe the pain of losing a twin within her.

"How is she?" Matt asked, coming into our locker-room with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Quiet. She won't talk about it; but I know it's bothering her. Cody and Adam are with her now, working on her new character." I answered, sitting down on a black folding chair in the middle of the room.

"You know tomorrow is her birthday, right?" Nick stated, trying to change the subject.

What! Her birthday! She had a halloween birthday and I didn't know it! I meantally screamed at myself for not knowing when her birthday actually was, course she never told me either. It probably had everything to do with Haden, not wanting to bring up old memories that were too painful to handle. "I actually didn't know. How did you guys know?" I asked, trying to understand how they knew and I didn't.

"Brandi mentioned it today in passing. I'm not surprised that none of us knew. She probably doesn't ever like to celebrate birthdays anymore." Matt answered, sitting down in another chair next to me.

The whole vibe in the room was depressing and it had nothing to do with work or our performance in the ring. Karina had become a huge part of our lives and when she was suffering, so did we. The Elite was a unit, sure there were some fights along the way; but in the end we were family. Karina was like a sister to Nick, Matt, Cody and Adam. For me, she was everything. She held my heart in the palm of her hand and there was nothing anyone could do about it. She was it for me and I knew it deep down.

**Karina**

"Are you sure you want to do this tonight?" Cody asked for the millionth time in the last ten minutes.

"Yes, I'm sure. I want to be in that ring again." I answered, giving him a smile.

"Alright, the stage is yours tonight for your return."

"Thank you."

Cody wrapped an arm around my shoulders and gave me a gentle squeeze before letting go. Brandi embraced me lovingly as I proceeded to step out of his office/locker-room. Adam was leaning against the wall waiting for me. It didn't matter where I went, there was always one member of The Elite looking out for me. Today all that attention was welcomed. "Do you have an idea what you are going to say for the promo part of your return?" He asked.

"I believe I do. My new character is very different and trust me...I won't mess it up."

"Didn't expect you to."

I gave a forced smile, placing a hand gently on his arm before walking away. Aimlessly walking around the hallways, I turned the corner and ran right into a body. Opening my mouth to apologize, I immediately closed it when I realized just who I had run into. Dark brown eyes bore straight through, sending a chill right down my spine. Adrian. "Surprise suprise, didn't expect to see you here tonight." He said, his thick accent licking across my skin.

"I do work here." I answered, slight annoyance in my voice.

"Yes; but considering what day it is today...I didn't expect you here."

"You don't have a right to speak about what day it is!"

Hostility was starting to bubble to the surface. I clenched my hands into fists at my sides, digging my nails into the skin on my palm. He raised his hands up, pretending to be innocent. "I meant no offence. I was just making a statement."

"Sure! Just like you threatened every single member of The Elite, because I finally left you."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I didn't threaten them."

"Don't play dumb with me, Adrian. You left a vase of flowers in my kitchen with a card telling me that you'd take them out one by one until I was alone, just like I left you."

He narrowed his brows, his dark eyes swirled with confusion. Adrian was a good liar; but I could always tell when he was lying to me and this time, it didn't seem like he was. Had he really not left that vase of flowers in my kitchen? If he didn't, then who did? "Karina, I didn't leave those." He stated, keeping a straight face without an ounce of deception.

"Why would I do that? I owned up to my mistakes with you, there is nothing I can do to change what happened in the past." He continued.

"You're right...you can't."

I stepped out around him and continued on towards my own locker-room. The sincerity on his face was etched into my mind. Had he really not left the vase and card? Who else could have?

**Kenny**

Sitting in the production area, I could see Karina make her way to the same area. She was wearing black vinyl leggings with black boots that came just above her knee and a white crocheted tank that allowed her black bralette for viewing. Her hair was curled in large waves cascading down her back like a waterfall.

"Hey." I called her, patting the empty seat next to me.

"Hey." She answered, sitting down next to me.

On the screens in front of us, there was a match between Shanna and Hikaru Shida. The newcomer was giving Hikaru a run for her money and the crowd was loving it. There was an uneasy feeling when I shifted my gaze towards Karina. Her eyes were puffy, though hidden behind a layer of make-up.

There weren't any words exchanged; but I knew that something was bothering her other than the anniversary of her brother's death. I assumed she was probably nervous about her return. The ending of the match came with Hikaru landing a knee strike to Shanna. The referee held her arm up as the winner. Before I knew it, Karina had gotten up from the chair and walked straight towards the curtain.

Nyla Rose entered the ringside area from the crowd. Her sights were set on the newcomer Shanna. Licking her lips, she got inside the ring, hovering over the fallen blonde woman. The lights darkened. Nyla let go of her hair and stood on guard. After a few seconds, the eerie intro to Karina's entrance music started.

The crowd popped loudly for her. Three weeks off TV and she was finally back where she belonged. Karina ran down the ramp and slid under the bottom rope. Nyla swung and missed the faster woman. Bouncing off the ropes, Karina struck with a low dropkick followed up with a violent knee strike to the face.

Nyla staggered to her feet. Karina used the rope to boost her speed. Wrapping both arms around Nyla's neck, she pulled down. It brough Nyla's back into Karina's knees hard. The emotions were written all over her face as she continued to attack the bigger woman. She wrapped both of her legs around Nyla's neck, holding one arm up. A triangle submission technique was applied.

More referees ran down to separate the two women. It was Aubrey who finally got Karina to break the hold. Flipping over, she got back to her feet and asked for a microphone. "Three weeks. You took three weeks away from me. All you did was enrage the darker side of me. A side no one has seen before; but you will…"

"At Full Gear, The Karmatic Angel arises and for you...karma is going to be a bitch."

Tossing the microphone back to Justin, she exited the ring and made her way back to the backstage area. A smile was on her face, realizing that she had just made a statement to the world and the loved every second of it. Her smile was perfect and I instantly took her into my arms and kissed her lips.

I could tell that I took her by surprise, which sometimes those were the best moments. Once we seperated, she opened her mouth to speak. "What was that for?" She asked, still having a hand resting on my chest.

"Does there have to be a reason to kiss you?" I asked.

"No."

"Then I'm going to continue to do so."

Kissing her lips again, a soft sigh sounded in her throat. It only seemed to make her want to hold onto her tighter. With her birthday being tomorrow, I needed to do something special for her. Today was hard enough on her; but I also wanted her to have a reason to celebrate her birth even if Haden wasn't around to share it with her.


	7. Birthday Girl

**A/N: A special thanks goes to martham 73 for becoming a follower. Another special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls for the wonderful review. Again, this is another special chapter to me. It's more on the fluffier side, hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think.**

**** The Lyrics in this chapter belong to Halestorm, I do not own them.****

**Chapter 7:**

**Birthday Girl**

**Karina**

It was October 31st and I knew exactly what day it was. My birthday, not that I celebrated it anymore since Haden died; but today felt different. A feeling of warmth was wrapped around me. Rolling to my side, I came face to face with a sleeping Kenny Omega. Just looking at him brought a sense of peace within me. Admiring his sleeping features, I bit my bottom lip when I thought about just how far our relationship had come.

He had spent most of the night after the show with the other members of The Elite and I felt like I needed to be alone, which was met with understanding from them all. Kenny showed up at my hotel room door around 1 am, he fell asleep fairly quickly with me in his arms.

"You're staring…" He comments, peaking an eye open at me.

"No, I'm admiring…" I answered, tucking my head back into my pillow.

He rolled to his side to face me fully. Both of his eyes were open now and I could see the beautiful blue that they were. I also knew that he had no idea that today was my birthday and I specifically didn't tell him for a reason. I didn't want to be reminded of what I lost six years prior. Today was like any other day as far as he knew. "We have planes to catch this morning." He stated, taking a hold of my hand from under the covers.

"Unfortunately, am I going to see you before Full Gear. I'm not scheduled to be on Dynamite before the Pay-Per-View." I asked, hoping that he would say yes.

"One of the days for sure. You could always come with me to the show. It doesn't matter that you aren't going to be on TV. There is always BTE."

"That is true. I suppose that makes more sense."

Kenny leaned in to kiss my forehead before getting out of bed. His flight was earlier than mine and parting was always the worst when it came to me. Pulling the comforter up closer to my neck, I simply watched as he got dressed and gathered up his belongings to leave. "I'll call you later, okay." He said, walking around the side of the bed to where I was lying.

"Okay." I answered, leaning up to meet his lips half-way.

The sound of the door closing behind him left me feeling empty. I was alone and if I was honest with myself, I didn't want to be alone today at all. Getting out of bed, I got ready for the short drive to the airport.

**Kenny**

It was hard for me to not tell her 'Happy Birthday'; but what I had planned for her was special and thankfully I had everyone on board with it. It took me a couple hours of phone calls and face to face meetings after the show last night to make it all fall together. Walking down the hall of the third floor of the hotel, I knocked on the door marked 322. Matt answered after a few seconds of waiting.

"Does she suspect anything?" Nick asked, once I got fully into the room.

"No, she doesn't even know that I know today is her birthday." I answered.

Cody, and Brandi were sitting on the sofa against the far wall of the room. Brandon Cutler was positioned on the edge of the coffee table. He was getting all the film gear together to start the journey of the day for a special episode of BTE, dedicated to Karina. "Is everything a go with her family and friends at her house?" Cody asked, leaning forward a little.

"Yeah, Rachel was really excited for the surprise. Shay is taking care of the distraction so we can get inside unnoticed." I answered, moving to sit down on the other side of the coffee table.

**Karina**

Opening the front door to my home, I was met with a warm embrace from my mother. She squeezed a little harder than normal and it was all I could do not to break down and cry in front of her. Shay walked down the spiral stairs and joined in the hugging. "So how was the flight?" My mother asked, breaking away from our embrace.

"Wasn't bad for economy travel." I replied, taking my shoes off at the door before walking further into the house.

"So can we go out and do something just the two of us?" Shay asked, fumbling with her hands in front of her stomach.

"Of course, what would you like to do?"

I loved spending time with her. It was one of my favorite things to do when I got back from a trip. My mother smiled at our interactions and I think on some level Shay has been a blessing to her as well. She may not be her child; but she treated her like she was. "I thought we could do a workout and then go to that café down the street for a little something to eat."

"Sounds like a plan."

Quickly changing my clothes into something I could work out in, I made my way back downstairs to grab my bag and keys. Shay followed me outside and got into the passenger side of my car. "I know you don't like thinking about today; but Happy Birthday."

"Thank you. I never imagined getting to thirty without him with me to share the moment."

Surprisingly enough, the workout went by fairly quickly. I changed clothes once again to appeal better in the café. We sat down at a small round table. Out of habit, we also sat down our phones down next to our right hands. There was a text message waiting for me. I was hoping that it was Kenny telling me that he was on the layover before getting on the last flight to Winnipeg. However, his name wasn't there when I opened my inbox. It was Adrian's.

_**"I know today is hard. I just hope it goes without any issues. Happy Birthday."**_

I couldn't even form a thought to answer this. He swore that he hadn't been the one to leave the flowers in my kitchen. I just couldn't think about anyone else wanting to hurt the people that meant the world to me other than him. Turning my phone over, I returned my focus on my little sister. "How is school going?" I asked, knowing things couldn't be easy for her in her last year of school with a whole new set of peers.

"It's going pretty well."

"That's good."

We spent the next hour talking about anything and everything from music, wrestling, relationships and favorites. I felt at ease catching up with her. My schedule has been overwhelmingly busy with album stuff and wrestling stuff, plus trying to find time for a personal life outside all of that.

The drive back was spent in song. Listening to the radio and singing along to the songs. It reminded me of the small road trips Haden and I used to take. We would sing along to the songs on the radio to pass the time and I found myself smiling at the memory.

Pulling in the driveway, I could see Jayson's SUV parked next to my mother's sedan. Another smile tugged at my lips, knowing that that Hayley and him would be inside waiting for me. Shay trailed behind, her fingers feverishly typing a message on her phone. Opening the door, the lights were out. That was odd considering there should be three people in the house. When I turned on the lights, "SURPRISE!" was shouted from more than just three people.

Cody, Brandi, Adam, Matt, Nick, and Britt were standing in a large group on the right side of the foyer. My mom, Jayson, Hayley and Kenny were on the left side. Shay gave my hand a gentle squeeze, while smiling up at me. Brandon Cutler held the camera out, so I knew he was filming for BTE.

"What is this?" I asked, trying not to choke on my words.

"It's for you. Happy Birthday, Rina." Kenny said, taking a step forward from the group.

Tears trickled down my face, realizing that he had put all this together last night. Not caring about character, I ran forward wrapping my arms around his neck. We had been adamant about keeping our relationship out of public eye. I didn't care at this moment. His arms quickly encased themselves around me. "It's okay. The public should know now." He whispered in my ear, knowing that I was hesitant in showing any kind of affection towards him while the camera was rolling.

"Alright, who wants to get this party started?" Jayson asked, lifting a bottle of Miller Lite in his hand.

I laughed, wiping the tears away from my face. Each person took their turn to approach me, wishing me a 'Happy Birthday'. I never thought I would be to enjoy a birthday again; but I had been proven wrong. Music blared from the speakers in my kitchen and I found myself dancing with Shay, Brandi and Britt.

My mother was enjoying herself more than I ever expected her to. A candle was burning in honor of Haden on the kitchen island, so I knew that he was with us in spirit. Hayley announced it was time for karaoke, opening another bottle of wine.

"Going to grace us with that voice?" Nick asked, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Would you like me to?" I countered, raising an eyebrow at him in the process.

Before he could even answer, Halestorm's song 'Here's to Us' came on and I knew that I couldn't pass that up. Shay started with Britt and Brandi. Brandon was getting one hell of a show for BTE this week.

Kenny glanced at me from the other side of the room. There was a different kind of smile on his face that I had never seen before. I moved my glass of wine in the air towards him, silently toasting him.

"Here's to us, here's to love

All the times, that we messed up

Here's to us, fill the glass

'Cause the last few nights have kicked my ass

If they give ya hell

Tell em to go fuck themselves, here's to us, here's to us." I sang.

Brandon turned the recording off after the song was over. It was now more of a private celebration. I weaved through the large group of people centered in the kitchen to make it to where Kenny was sitting. "Thank you." I said sitting down next to him.

"You're welcome. Just because your brother is no longer with you doesn't mean that you have to stop living your life. He would be proud of everything you've become."

He took both of my hands into his own, brushing the pad of his thumb across my knuckles. I don't know how I made it this far without him. His support meant the world to me, which is why I never understood why he continued to deal with my fucked up emotions. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small box wrapped in silver paper. "What's this?" I asked, curious as to what he was putting into my hand.

"A present, silly."

He was teasing me upon asking the dumb question. Pulling the paper up with a fingernail, I removed the rest with ease. A black velvet box was inside and opening that, a beautiful necklace rested there. White gold chain with a circular coin pendant that had a phoenix etched into the metal. On the back of the pendent there was writing etched in. "Rise from the Ashes'. "It's beautiful, thank you."

"You remind me of a Phoenix. You always rise from the horrible things that have happened to you in the past. No matter what happens in the future, I will be there with every step of the way. I love you."

My heart was pounding against my chest. My eyes were wide with surprise. He had said those three words that solidified a relationship. No gift has ever meant so much to me until now. Sitting the box on the table behind me, I immediately leaned in to kiss him. My hand placed gently on the side of his face.

When we seperated, I kept my eyes closed for a second longer. "I love you too." I answered, knowing that it was the complete truth. I did love him and I was foolish to think I'd never love again after Adrian. Kenny was everything I had ever wanted in a partner.

"Hey you two, come join the party over here." Matt suggested.

Smiling, we both got up from where we were standing and made our way back to the group. My mother had set down a cake onto the island counter. The words 'Happy Birthday Karina' were written in teal icing while the rest was white. Every single one of them sung me the birthday song and told me to make a wish before blowing out the candles.

The wish wasn't hard to come up with. I wished that we all would continue to be friends and strive to be there for each other no matter what happens down the road. Blowing out the candles, I smiled, loving the feeling of having each and every one of them there to celebrate this day with me.


	8. Behind The Grey

**A/N: A special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls and Leasha Ambrose for the wonderful reviews. We are getting down to the final few chapters and there is going to be so much happening. I hope you all enjoy it, let me know what you think.**

**Chapter 8:**

**Behind the Grey**

**Karina**

Waking up the next morning, I felt different, though I didn't understand why. Something about Kenny telling me that he loved made me feel wanted, yet panicked at the same time. I knew that I loved him too; however, my past was still weighing heavily on my chest.

Adrian swears that he isn't to blame for the flowers and the threat from a couple weeks ago. I wanted to believe him. I really did; but our past came right back to slap me in the face. Curling in my bottom lip, I rolled over onto my side. Kenny wasn't there, his side of the bed was empty and then I smelled coffee brewing from downstairs.

Smiling, I tossed the covers off and got out of bed. Running my fingers through my tangled locks of hair, I wanted to look somewhat decent before going into the kitchen. Padding across the laminate floors, I made my way down the spiral stairs and into the foyer. I could hear Shay talking to Kenny, so out of curiosity I stopped walking and listened.

"Can I tell you something?" Shay asked, her voice was a little hesitant.

"Of course, what's up?" He answered, the happiness was laced in his voice and it made me smile.

"I don't think those flowers and threat were for Karina."

My eyes immediately went wide and the smile disappeared. It was obvious that the threat was made for me, so I didn't understand why she would think that they weren't. Unless she knew something that we didn't. "What makes you think that, Shay?" He questioned her, the sound of the coffee pot sitting back down on the machine startled me a little.

"You know your sister has a not so pretty past with an old boyfriend, right?" He asked again.

I know; but I feel like that threat was directed at me, not her."

"Again, why would you think that?"

Seriously! Why would she even consider such a thing? I was the only family she had left, she moved away from all the people she used to know months ago. It didn't make any sense to me. Taking another quiet step towards the kitchen, I peered around the edge of the archway. "Karina doesn't know this about our father; but he had a lot of enemies. Those hospitals he told us he was in multiple times in our lives were just a cover up to what he was really doing. I did some digging when I was younger because I didn't understand why he was never around."

"I suppose that is logical. What exactly did your father do?"

"He's of mexican descent. If you ever noticed why Karina and I have some latino features that is why. He came from a family of drug traffickers, he was dealing illegal drugs his whole life. He ran when Rachel got pregnant with Karina and Haden. I guess that was his way of not bringing them into his world."

"But what about you?"

"He tried to leave when my mom found out she was pregnant with me. We were his second chance, I guess; but as that turned out...he couldn't leave so he only showed up when it was safe.. I have no doubt in my mind that my house catching on fire was no accident. It was freaking intentional and they died because of it."

Closing my eyes, I swallowed the lump in my throat. I didn't want to believe what she was saying about our father. No one knew that I was his daughter in Mexico; but they all knew about Shay. Perhaps she was right and the threat wasn't for me, which meant Shay knew who the person was who made the threat a reality.

Shay lifted up her cup of coffee and slowly sipped from the rim of the mug, avoiding eye contact with Kenny. He remained surprisingly calm with her, which was the polar opposite of how he reacted when I showed him the threat in my hotel room.

"Why haven't you told Karina this? She deserves to know who her father really is."

"She's too fragile to hear this. I love her and I'm glad that I finally have a chance to have a relationship with her; but this will break her more than she's already broken."

"Shay, you really can't keep this a secret from her. If you don't tell her, then I will."

Taking a deep breath, I stepped out around the corner and stepped into the kitchen. "No need, I heard it all." I admitted, staring at both of them trying to figure out my emotions that were at war with each other.

Kenny instantly moved to my side, placing a hand on my waist. I think he knew that I was upset. I kind of felt betrayed by not only Shay; but the thoughts inside my head that my father had been a decent man with mental problems. That whole idea was now a lie and I had no idea what to think anymore. "I'm sorry. I should have told you myself." Shay said, looking down to the floor in shame.

"I'm not upset with you. If I'm honest with myself, I probably would have done the same thing if the roles were reversed." Which was the truth, I probably would have done the same thing.

"Rina, are you okay?" Kenny asked me, placed his lips to my left temple.

"The more pressing question is what do we do if Shay is right and the threat was made for her and not me."

Silence had taken over the room. No one knew what to say or do in this situation. Had Adrian been the one to make the threat it wouldn't have been so bad, because I knew he'd never actually take someone's life; but now that my father's life style was out in the open there was no guarantee that Shay's life wasn't in danger now.

Shay took another step closer to me. Her long brown hair fell off her shoulder as she wrapped her arms tightly around me. I immediately embraced her in return. "I know who wrote the threat, Karina." She whispered.

"Who?"

"His name is Alejandro Santiago and he's my ex."

"What! What the fuck is it with ex-boyfriends wanting to ruin our lives?"

Kenny had this transparent look upon his face, like he wanted to say something; but opted to not say a word. I think he was finally understanding that my family has been tailored with crazy. "So what do we do with this ex-boyfriend of yours?" He asked, wrapping an arm around her and one around me.

"Nothing. I have so much proof on him that all I have to do is go to the police and he'll be arrested. I didn't want to do that if he simply just left me alone; but as we've figured out...he's not going to. I have no doubt he's been watching me. Dick, just couldn't handle the fact that I figured out that I was gay during our relationship."

"And now she talks like you, babe. She really is your sister." Kenny commented, giving my arm a squeeze.

We chuckled at the statement. There could never be a normal day in this house. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I wouldn't have it any other way. Shay turned to leave the kitchen and ran up the stairs leaving Kenny and I alone. He shifted back to the counter to pour me a cup of coffee. "Is there any normal with you?" He asked in a teasing manner.

"Probably not." I replied, shrugging my shoulders with a sly grin on my face.

"Good thing I love you then."

My heart started to race the second those three words came out of his mouth. That was the second time he had told me that in twenty-four hours. The warmth crept to my face, blushing my cheeks with heat. He walked around the island and leaned in to place his lips on my heated cheek. "You are so adorable when you blush."

I loved him so much it hurt. Of course, I couldn't bring myself to say it back or smile. Instead, my lips curved in the opposite direction of a smile. The reaction caught his attention immediately. I knew he was going to ask what was wrong. Was I ready to spill my guts to him? Of course, whether or not I was ready was irrelevant. "What's wrong?" He asked, sitting down on the bar stool next to me.

"Are you sure that you want to be with me?"

"What the hell kind of question is that? Of course, I want to be with you. Why would you think that I didn't?"

"There is so much going on...in this family...with me. I'm a little overwhelmed with it all. There is no doubt in my mind that I love you; but I'm no sure where to go from here. My history speaks for itself...I don't know how to be a proper girlfriend."

Without answering my protest, he cupped the side of my face and pressed his lips to mine. I probably looked like hell, no make-up, unbrushed hair and puffy eyes...and he still was kissing me. His tongue briefly touched my slightly parted lips, wanting entrance. I granted his request. My stomach tightened upon the feeling of his kisses leaving my lips to the shallow of my neck. "You don't need to be perfect, Rina. You are perfect in my eyes and that's all that matters.

"I love you." I finally said with a smile on my face.

"I love you too."


	9. For That Special Someone

**A/N: A special thanks goes to BreakTheWalls for the wonderful review. We are so close to the ending and I'm excited to bring it to light for all of you. On to number nine and let me know what you think.**

**Chapter 9:**

**For That Special Someone**

**Karina**

It didn't take long for what Shay admitted to explode. She did exactly what she said she was going to do. This ex of her's was indeed arrested the second they found him. Kenny spent every free moment he had at my house watching over us. He was worried that all of this was going to backlash onto me. Thankfully, it hadn't. If anything, I had a different vision of my father now that I knew the truth about him and it made me even closer to Shay in the process.

Once Dynamite came around for the next week, Shay went to stay with Jayson and Hayley while I left with Kenny for the flight we were scheduled to be on. Though I wasn't a part of the show, I had an idea to bring to Tony's attention for Full Gear. I honestly wanted him to like it, because I was so passionate about it.

"Are you okay?" Kenny asked, taking my hand into his.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I'm just thinking about stuff." I answered him with a smile.

"Like what?"

"I've got an idea I want to pitch Tony when we get to the arena."

He leaned in and placed his lips on my temple. "I'm glad you've got the creative juices flowing again." He whispered before moving to kiss my cheek. Slouching down in my seat, I rested my head against his shoulder. We spent the remainder of the flight that way. I couldn't have felt more safe than next to him.

Once we arrived at the arena, we seperated. He had a production meeting to attend to and I wanted to find Tony as quickly as possible before the meeting started or I was going to have to wait until after it was over.

Thankfully, he was walking down the hall I was coming down. "Good too see, Karina." He greeted with a smile.

"I was actually looking for you." I stated, stopping in the middle of the hallway.

"Oh, what's on your mind?"

"I've got an idea that I'd like to run by you for Full Gear."

He looked intrigued by my statement. My character change had been his idea and I went with it because it sounded interesting to me; but this idea wasn't about me. It was something I wanted to do for Kenny, because he deserved more. He deserved the world, because he was the most selfless person I've ever known. He made me understand what love really was and he showed me affection like no one ever has.

"Let's hear it."

"I want to perform Kenny's entrance for him. This match might be unsanctioned; but it's still a big deal. He doesn't know I want to do this. I kind of want this to be a surprise for him."

"I can tell that you love him dearly and this is something you feel very strongly about, so I'm going to grant your request. I'll talk to Cody privately about it, you get whoever you need to Baltimore and everything will be a go."

"Thank you so much."

He smiled and reached over to give me a brief hug before continuing on towards his production meeting. Leaning back against an equipment case, I pulled my phone out of my back pocket. Scrolling down the names until I found Jayson, I tapped the call button and listened to the rings until he finally answered.

"How is Shay?" I asked.

"She's fine. Hayley took her shopping."

"So I need the band in Baltimore Saturday. We are going to perform Kenny's entrance; but it is a secret. This is a surprise for him."

"I think we can manage that. I assume we are bringing Shay along too."

"Of course. She loves coming to the shows."

I was thrilled with the fact that it didn't take any convincing at all for them to agree to make this surprise special for Kenny. Smiling to myself, I housting myself up onto the case fully. With my earbuds in place, I turned on Kenny's entrance song. The words filtered through my mind, learning and memorizing as they flowed.

The urge to sing was starting to get a little overwhelming and then doubt started to set in. Was I going to be able to do his entrance song justice by singing it myself without the original singer Little V? Shaking my head of the negative thoughts, I pushed through and started to hum the lyrics in my throat.

"Karina." A voice called and then a hand touched my shoulder.

"Holy shit, Jon you scared the hell out of me." I answered, pulling the earbuds out of my ears.

Jon stood before me, dressed in a pair of dark colored jeans and a black t-shirt. His facial expression was clearly innocent. He really hadn't meant to scare me. "Sorry, didn't see the buds in." He stated, shifting to sit down next me.

"It's okay. What's up?"

"I wanted to talk to you about the unsanctioned match between your boyfriend and I."

"Oh? Listen, I know there is genuine hostility between the two of you and I'm hoping this match will put those to rest. You've stuck up for me when no one else did in WWE and I will be grateful for that. You encouraged me to follow my heart when I was so damn confused. I couldn't have asked for a better friend than you. I don't want things to change between us."

He wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I leaned in, accepting the comfort. There was a connection between us that was indescribable. It wasn't romantic in any way, it was more of a brotherly connection. "It won't. I need to see what this guy is really made of, if he is what the world says he is. This match is going to be violent, Karina."

"I know, which is why I'm going to perform his entrance...to give him something personal to hang onto."

"He's lucky to have you."

"No...I'm lucky to have him."

"Just don't stay out there during the match, I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I don't plan on staying out there."

He squeezed my shoulder and then jumped down from the equipment case to continue on his way. I smiled just as I saw Kenny walk down the same hallway. He greeted me warmly with a quick peck to my lips. "How was the meeting?" I asked.

"Like all meetings unfortunately. Was that Moxley talking to you?"

"Yeah, he wanted to talk to me about your match with him."

His brows furrowed. I could tell he was annoyed. Their relationship was still hostile and I really hoped this match would change all that between them. "What did he want to know?" He asked, trying hard now to sound agitated.

"He told me to stay in the back for the match. He doesn't want to see me get hurt."

"For once the prick is right. You don't need to be out there."

"I wasn't planning on it. Storyline doesn't require my presence and even if it did...I don't want to be out there. I don't want to see the things you two are going to do to each other up close. It's bad enough I'm going to see the aftershocks."

"Are you worried?"

"Of course, I'm fucking worried."

That came out much louder than I anticipated. He shifted his hands to pull me down from the equipment case and stand before him. I felt so short compared to his six foot frame. Looking up at him, his beautiful blue eyes held mine for several seconds. "This is one of the reasons I love you. Your concern for others is a beautiful trait that you just don't find in many people anymore. I promise that I will be fine."

"You really can't promise something like that. The match you two are having has so many risks involved."

"Well then, if I'm hurt too badly then you'll just have to take care of me. Won't ya?"

"I suppose that could be worked out."

Just when I thought I couldn't love him anymore than I already did, he had to go and say things like that. My heart pounded against my chest and I knew that he could feel it when he pulled me into his arms. Everything was perfect with him and I wanted it to stay that way. I wanted this to be the rest of my life. It didn't matter that we've only known each other for six months. This was it for me.


	10. The Angel In Us

**A/N: A big thanks goes to BreakTheWalls for the wonderful review. We are down to the last chapter. It's been a joy to bring this story to light and I hope you all will continue to follow my work in the future. Cheers to the end.**

**Chapter 10:**

**The Angel In Us**

**Karina**

The day of Full Gear had arrived and the butterflies in my stomach was at an all time high. This was my first one on one match in AEW and I was nervous as hell. Kenny was preparing for his own match later on and the emptiness without him was settling in. Today was going to be a busy day and all I could do was pray that everything would work out how I had envisioned it.

Plugging in my ear buds, I shifted across the floor in my locker-room to start my warm ups of both my body and voice. My bright idea of performing Kenny's entrance was also making me nervous. I wanted everything to be perfect. There was no room for mistakes, not when it came to him.

Doing a couple of squats, I shifted to stretches. It wasn't until a knock at the door did I stop. Opening the door, Dustin Rhodes was standing there with a smile on his face. Pulling the buds from my ears, I welcomed him inside. "You ready?" He asked.

"Yes. I'm nervous though." I answered honestly.

"Feeling nervous before a match really doesn't go away, no matter how many years you've put in the business."

Being a vetern in the business for many years, I understood that he was probably telling the truth. Course, while I was NXT, I felt nervous for every match; but when I was on the main roster those feelings faded away, because my matches there weren't very long and most of them I lost.

I stood firm with my eyes closed. Dustin was doing my face paint for the character change I had gone through for tonight's match. The excitement was building. Tony was giving me free reign over the character he designed. My creativity was flowing rapidly for the last week over the look I wanted to have.

"You are going to kill it tonight." He commented.

"I really hope so. Tonight is going to be special in more ways than one."

"I agree…"

I parted my eyes open and saw the somber look upon his face. There was something he wasn't telling me. I wondered what it was. "What? Is there something else?" I asked, trying not to sound too eager.

"No, I'm just trying to be encouraging. I know you've got a lot on your plate tonight."

I wasn't buying his answer. Instead of pushing for a better answer, I simply closed my eyes and allowed him to finish with the paint to my face. It got my mind reeling with the possibilities of what it was that he was hiding from me. Did it have to do with Kenny?

Swallowing hard, I felt the cold of paint run down my face. Feeling Dustin's fingers smudge the paint together, made tonight even more of a reality. "All done." He said, taking a step back.

I immediately went into the bathroom to look into the mirror. The reflection staring back at me was absolute perfection. Black lines ran down from the corners of my eyes down to my chin. It looked like I was crying the tears of hell, which was part of my new character design. I was in between heaven and hell.

Turning back into the room, Dustin was waiting for the verdict of his design. "This is perfect, thank you so much for doing this for me." I said, closing the distance between us to give him a brief hug.

"You're welcome. My dad would be so proud of you, Karina. You've come such a long way from those days in WWE."

"I appreciate you saying that. He helped me so much in NXT."

"I know…"

Dustin patted the top of my head and left the room. I was alone, so I decided to get dressed in my ring gear for tonight's match.

**Kenny**

Walking the halls, focusing on my match with Jon Moxley at the end of the show in a lights out unsanctioned match, I saw Dustin approach me. "Hey, what's up?" I asked, stopping in the middle of the hall.

"Just got done helping Karina with her character design for tonight."

"How is she?"

"Nervous; but that's completely understandable."

He wasn't wrong. This was her first one on one match in three years. She's been through so much over the years and now that she is here, I wondered if her life would calm down in the negativity department. "Can I speak freely here?" He asked sincerely and it got me wondering what was on his mind to ask such a thing.

"Of course."

"Please don't hurt her. That woman has been the best thing that's happened to all of us. Cody views her like a little sister and I know that you love her dearly...all I'm saying, is that don't let fear get in the way of your happiness."

"Hurting her the last thing on my mind."

He placed a steady hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze before continuing on down the hall. It was odd for him to insert himself in private matters; but he wasn't wrong when he said that Karina had been the best thing that happened to us all. Each member of The Elite cared about her on some level.

When I got to the production area, Nyla Rose was standing there waiting patiently. Her match with Karina was the opening contest on the main card. If I was honest, it was the perfect opening match for this show because it was a grudge style match. There was hostility between them both on screen and off screen. It mostly stemmed from jealousy on Nyla's part.

"Are you okay?" Matt asked the second I sat down next to him.

"Yeah, I'm okay."

It was kind of the truth; however, Dustin's words left a shadow over my inner thoughts. What exactly was he trying to tell me? There had to be a reason he would even say something like that and that's when it dawned on me. Was he suggesting I do that? Pushing that thought back, I concentrated on the opening of the show.

Justin Roberts was in the middle of the ring getting ready to announce the participants of the opening match. 'Beast Bomb' started to play and Nyla ascended the stairs to walk out onto the stage.

"This opening contest is scheduled for one fall. From Washington D.C...she is the Native Beast...Nyla Rose!"

She stalked down the ramp towards the ring. The crowd was against her, mostly because of her recent actions towards the other women on the roster. Nyla stood in the middle of the ring, talking a large amount of trash on her opponent for the evening.

The lights went low. I smiled knowing that Karina would soon make her appearance. An eerie intro, made by In The Moment called 'The Red Crusade' started to play. The lights flickered several times before Karina started to ascend up from the bottom of the stage. 'The In-Between' from In This Moment started to play out to the world from the chorus of the song.

I was amazed by the detail in her ring attire. Black wings wrapped themselves around her body. The face paint made the world see that she was crying black tears. Pulling the small string wrapped around her hand, the wings expanded just as she screamed out.

The crowd was hot for the character change. Nyla had an indifferent look upon her face. "And her opponent. From Jacksonville, Florida...she is the Karmatic Angel...Karina Dawson!" Nyla's eyes furrowed out of annoyance, pacing for the eventual collision.

Karina shed the wings, revealing black vinyl shorts and crop tank-top. Her hair was down in large aquamarine waves across her back. She got inside the ring and stared at Nyla with a cock of her head. Aubrey Edwards signaled for the bell and the match had begun.

In normal circumstances, Nyla would easily have the power advantage; but Karina had done a lot over the last few weeks to increase her physical power, combining that with her speed. She was lethal all around and I couldn't wait to see what she was going to bring to the table in this match.

"Am I supposed to fear you!" Nyla shouted, standing face to face with her adversary.

Karina said nothing. Instead, she swiftly struck with a quick backfist. The blow knocked Nyla back a couple steps. It only seemed to anger her further, swinging wildly with her larger arm. Ducking under the clothesline attempt, Karina rolled forward, pushed with her hands to put herself into a handstand position and bounced off the ropes with an attempt of an elbow shot.

Nyla caught her. Karina kicked free and jumped down to land a swift knee to her jaw. A smile crept to her lips. She was enjoying herself now and I couldn't help but feel the excitement for her.

"She's doing awesome out there." Matt commented.

"For sure. She's so quick on her feet." Nick added.

As soon as they said that, Nyla planted Karina with a powerbomb. A signature move she was known for. She went for the cover and Aubrey only counted two before Karina's shoulder shot off the mat. Coughing as if the wind had been knocked from her lungs, she rolled into her side. Nyla grabbed a fist full of hair, dragging her back to her feet the hard way. A sly smile was now on the Native Beast's face. She was enjoying the pain she was inflicting.

Nyla attempted a standing leg drop; but Karina had the instinct to roll out of the way. Quickly getting back to her feet, she ran against the ropes and hit a nice running knee strike, following up with a snap DDT. Scrambling for the cover, Aubrey got into position and only counted a two count before Nyla kicked out.

The frustration was settling in. Karina's eyes, that were red from the contacts, had a certain appeal to them. Her ability to act in the ring was just as good as I've seen her onstage singing her heart out. I loved seeing this. I loved watching how much she's improved since I spent all that time getting her back to ring shape.

Getting back to her feet once again, Karina ducked under another clothesline attempt. Whipping her body around Nyla's frame, like I've done so many times in the ring, she cupped her arms around Nyla's snapped back and delivered a Snap Dragon Suplex.

Nyla staggered into the ropes. Karina rushed forward, springboarding into them and snapped Nyla's face down into the mat. She successfully delivered her signature move 'Cloud Nine'. Aubrey counted the three count and declared her the winner of the match. "Here is your winner...Karina...Dawson." Justin announced.

"That Snap Dragon was fantastic, Kenny." Nick praised.

"That it was…"

The crowd cheered for her and all I could do was smile at her success tonight. Karina made her way back up the ramp, stepping through the gorilla area and connected with my eyes. Matt and Nick stood up clapping. They embraced her tightly before stepping away, their match was next on the card.

"You did an amazing job out there tonight." I complimented her.

"Thank you. That performance was for Haden."

"He'd be so proud of you, Rina."

She smiled, creasing the paint still on her face. "I'm going to shower and change, I'll be back soon." I gave her hand a gentle squeeze and agreed that was probably for the best. Once she was out of sight, I moved to sit back down behind the production screens.

**Karina**

The hot water felt amazing on my skin. I kept replaying the match inside my head over and over again. I'm usually not that pleased with my work; but this time, I was very happy with the turnout of my character and the match itself. I wanted to think that Haden was smiling wherever he was, so that was what I was going to think of.

"Karina…" Shay's voice came to my ear from under the water.

"In the shower!" I shouted.

I could hear the heels of her shoes click against the floor. Turning the water off, I reached out to grab the towel I had hung near the curtain. Wrapping it around myself, I stepped out to face my sister fully.

She had her beautiful brown hair curled in large waves adjusted over her shoulders. A similar set of blue eyes peered at me. I could tell she wanted to say something, so I tucked the end of the towel at the junction between my arm and breast. "What's up?" I asked.

"I think I know what I want to do after I graduate."

"Oh? How did you come to figuring that out?"

"By watching you tonight just absolutely kill it out there. You were so happy and every move you made was fluid, thought out and perfectly executed. I want to do this."

Quickly turning my head to really look at her dead in the eyes. The sincerity and seriousness was written clearly on her features. There was no doubt in my mind that what she said was the truth. In the short time that we've known each other, I've bonded with her like no one else. She was my sister and there was so much of me in her. "If that is what you want to do, then I support you fully."

"I'd like for you to train me."

"Oh...I don't know if that's a good idea. That might be something you'd have to ask someone else; but I will try to teach you as much as I can."

"Fair enough.

Padding across the floor, I wrapped my arms around her tightly. She returned the gesture. Standing that way for a few moments, I understood why life had played out the way it did. It was all the plan of getting this beautiful young lady in my life. My mom treated her just like her own child and that was a special bond I loved watching grow each and every day. Though, I was fairly certain that once Shay told her that she wants to wrestle there will be some discussion about the decision.

"Are you ready for tonight?" She asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be. Is it bad that I'm still nervous, even though I've already wrestled?"

"Not at all; but you were born to do this, now blow the world away with your voice too."

She left me to get dressed and warm my voice up a little more. I quickly blow dried my hair and then pulled half of it up into a fantasy braid twist, clipping to make it look like a crown. I reached into my bag for a strain of artificial ivy vines to weave into the braid. Zipping up the sides of my black ankle booties, I felt satisfied with the outfit of choice. A pair of distressed skinny black jeggings and a flowy silver strappy top that criss-crossed in the back.

It amazed me how quickly the rest of the show flew by just by taking a lengthy shower, having a heart to heart with my sister and making final preparations to my performance. That was supposed to be a total surprise for Kenny. I couldn't wait to see the look on his face.

"Are you ready?" Cody asked, catching up with me as I headed to join the rest of my band mates.

"Definitely."

"He knows his entrance is being performed live. He thinks it's by Little V though."

I smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder in passing. This was a big moment for the both of us. Getting into position, I was lifted back up onto the stage just as I had been earlier on in the night. My band was already in place, with a new face for the crowd to see. Shay was behind the keyboards. We were hidden behind the stage props that would lower when it was time.

Jon Moxley's music hit and he entered the arena through the crowd. They all loved him and it was easily understood why. His movements were methodical and calculated, at least for the entrance they were. I knew that he didn't always have a plan, he thought in the moment and that had been successful for him in his career.

Justin Roberts introduced him in his usual gander and it put an even bigger smile on my face. There was a few seconds of a gap before it was our que. Shay began with the slow intro. The stage lifted up and I held the microphone to my lips.

"I hear the Battle Cry

Under the Devil's Sky

The One Winged Angel Screams

It fuels my Hopes and Dreams

The Best Bout Machine" I held out the last note in a scream.

The rest of the band kicked in and Kenny made his appearance, followed by pyrotechnical stuff that exploded almost right next to me. His confusion was masked well by his cool demeanor when making an entrance for a match; but there was a smile on his face. I stepped closer to him, as I prepared for the next verse. He took my free hand, bringing it to his lips and kissed it gently before walking down the ramp towards the ring.

The musical solo was played to perfection by my best friends and/or family. Kenny got into the ring and stared down his rival, both inside and outside the ring. Justin introduced him just as we finished playing the song. I took steps back and returned to the backstage area.

It was hard to watch the match. The brutality and sadistic things they did to each other made me want to vomit right where I stood. The barbed wire board was the last straw, turning away from the production screen just as both men fell into the contraption. Brandi was there to assure me that everything would be okay. I didn't believe her, there was no way that this was okay.

Getting up from the chair, I turned to see Matt and Nick standing at the edge of the stairs that would lead out to the stage area. They issued me to where they stood, so I obliged. The padding on the ring was ripped up and the bare wood planks were exposed. "How is this match a good thing?" I asked, almost in tears.

"It's what they both wanted."

He wasn't wrong, they both wanted the match; but I had a bad feeling about it and that's when I heard the thud of Kenny's head hitting the exposed wood. Jon got the pinfall victory. Matt and Nick walked out to help Kenny. I froze, unable to move once I saw them help him walk up the ramp. Blood was caked to his back from the stab wounds caused by the barbed wire. His eye was starting to swell up. "Oh my god, Kenny…" I whispered the second he was in arms reach of me.

"I'm okay."

"Like hell you are!" I shouted.

I followed closely behind them as they brought him to the trainers room. The doctor had him sit down on the medical bed. Matt and Nick took their leave, leaving us alone. Sitting down in the chair next to the bed, I folded my hands together across my lap. "I'll be right back." The doctor said, stepping out of the room.

"I promise that I will be fine. These are just minor cuts. I'm just going to sore for a while."

"You scared the hell out of me."

"I'm sorry; but thank you for the wonderful surprise of performing my entrance."

"You're welcome."

He shifted his body a little, wincing in pain. I immediately got to my feet and stood closer to him. His hand instantly went to my waist, brushing his thumb across my hip. I leaned down to gently place my lips on his. In a split second to catch my breath, he whispered "Marry me" in between kisses.

Breaking away from him, I stared him dead in the eyes. Curling my bottom lip inward, I thought about those words. Was it a heat of the moment thing or did he really mean it? I didn't want to hurt his feelings by questioning it; but what choice did I have. I wanted the truth, because if he meant it...I knew the answer.

"What?"

"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have said that. Dustin got me thinking earlier today. I don't want anyone else. I just want you. It's weird; but I think I've been in love with you before even knowing you, if that makes sense."

I took another step closer to him, placing a hand on his chest. His heart was pounding against the palm of my hand. "I think it makes perfect sense." The doctor walked back in, interrupting us. Smiling, I stepped away from him to give him room to work.

Kenny's eyes never left mine and in that moment I opened my mouth, not caring that we had company now. "My answer is yes." A smile curved his lips and that picture alone was perfect, just like him.


End file.
